Beacon Eternal Volume 2: Smouldering Embers
by Valzoa
Summary: The Vytal festival changed everything for the members of Team KOAL and took something from each of them. Some losses are felt deeper than others, but all will leave their mark. Sometimes the greatest challenges are the thorns that grow within the heart and how they are faced is what defines the durable. But some bonds are stronger than any shadow can consume.
1. Of Ivory Snow

It was a cold day, but it always was in Atlas. The white haired boy adjusted his coat, pulling it close to his face for warmth despite the smell of ashes that still clung to it. He pulled out his scroll, looking over the Schnee compound again. He spoke softly so as to not tip off anyone below, "Patrol loop confirmed and the location of Damsel locked in. Is the Condor ready to leave the nest?" The three beeps over his scroll confirmed the plan. They were clear to go. "Alright, Operation Ivory Tower is a go." He tapped a few more things on his scroll and when a local streetlight turned on he jumped from his perch, his semblance forming a black glider locked onto his two hands. He had five minutes before they would know who he was here for and by then, they would be long gone.

* * *

Zoge drew the long sword Kaen had given him with a slow precision as he faced his one armed friend. "You truly are incorrigible, aren't you? Down an arm, your tactician down a semblance, and you still think we can make it into the Vytal festival tournament." His team leader smirked at him, motioning with his own long sword for Zoge to make his approach. Zoge was still adjusting to the weight of the blade as well as having an actual measure of health and strength in his body. Since the incident in the shop, his semblance had not returned, allowing his body to heal and recover. The doctor told him that his body would never fully recover from his semblance, but that he could still easily live to sixty if he took good care of himself. Kaen had insisted that he and Zoge spar every day as their physical therapy. Kaen was adjusting to being down an arm at about the same pace Zoge was adjusting to his returning strength. Where once it would have been brain versus brawn the tables had shifted to a more even match.

Zoge closed the distance almost instantly, slowing at the last moment to parry the incoming strike, but moving too fast to avoid the follow up kick to the gut. He tried to parry the incoming volley of blows but could only deflect them enough to avoid any clean hits. Eventually under this barrage, Zoge saw his chance and used the flat of his blade to knock Kaen's weapon away. Kaen almost tried to grab it with his phantom limb but quickly restrained himself and joined Zoge in a leap to try and acquire the blade. A second too slow, it would seem when his ally grasped it before him. Kaen rolled away and chuckled, "See how good you are getting? Pair that up with the project we have been working on and I don't see any reason not to at least give it all we have."

Zoge sighed, dropping his guard long enough for Kaen to kick the blade free from his grip, sending it sailing across the training room and a distant voice to cry out, "Hey! Watch it!"

* * *

As he flew over the walls he chuckled as the cameras twitched for a minute before turning away in their synchronized cycle and the Knight units sparked a little. He freed his hand from his glider to drop the little device from his pocket, keeping them malfunctioning on this side of the perimeter while he prepared for phase 2. He landed the glider on the roof, the structure disappearing as he did so. Rotating the chambers on his glove he nodded. So far so good. He placed his palm beneath him, a symbol appearing on the roof before a sudden gust of wind propelled him over the next section of security and leaving a little present for later. He landed upon the balcony with a light thud, turning to face the heiress and would-be huntress. "Hello, Schnee. Ready to go?" Her surprised and worried expression didn't fill him with confidence. "Before you ask, I'm here because we both know this isn't over."

* * *

Zoge laughed as he sat across from her, "To think yours is the team we are going against. I have to admit, I'm looking forward to it." He moved his piece only to have her size him up intensely from behind her black hair with her golden eyes. When this took more than a minute he shook his finger at her. "If you keep doing that, I might have to bring a clock in here."

Cinder spoke with a disinterested tone, "You always make the strangest moves. Leave valuable pieces open and use your King as bait. Why don't you just play normally." The two had been playing daily since her arrival and Zoge couldn't have been more entertained by this. Someone who loved the game as much as him.

"Because, the best chess move isn't always the most ideal. Instead, it is best to play the move your opponent least wants. For example, you protect your queen as often as you rely on her for your most daring moves. Why not protect your other pieces more?" Zoge watched as Cinder moved her knight in between her rook and his bishop.

"She is more dangerous than all of them, so I keep them around as long as they are useful and then make sure their sacrifices aren't in vain." She watched with annoyance as he moved his rook into check with her king. "Of course, another misdirection, but you aren't getting away with it this time." She moved her queen to capture it. "I'll admit there has to be some wisdom in what you say or we wouldn't end up in as many draws."

Zoge nodded, "I wish that Kaen wasn't making such a spectacle of himself. Some nobody country boy trying to be a hero despite a lack of formal education. Feel good story of the year, apparently. He is just setting so many up for disappointment." Cinder laughed a little at the thought, so he couldn't help but ask, "Why do you find it so amusing?"

Her eyes narrowed with mirth as she smirked at her opponent, "In any other situation, this would be a folk legend. You have to admit, he is almost too perfect for that role. A living folk hero." Zoge tapped his chin and nodded in agreement as he moved another piece and was met with another intense glare from his opponent.

* * *

He expected her to hesitate, but despite his predictions, she nodded, "Thank you. I had my own plan so I was already packed. But why are YOU here and why are you wearing..." She hesitated, clearly recognizing his attire. He adjusted his hat and chuckled which seemed to put her on edge. She hadn't heard it often so he wasn't surprised.

"We can discuss that later, right now. We have 3 minutes before we leave. Grab what you have and be ready to jump." He went into her room and over to the door, placing his hand on it to make a white glowing symbol appeared. "That might make the escape easier." Weiss went over to her packed luggage and brought it to the balcony. Zoge played with the pin on his lapel that had his entire team's symbols on it. "I heard about the party. Sounds like you and Ironwood are the only ones who can feel it in the air. Makes what comes next so much more sad." Weiss looked at him with a quizzical look but he simply looked at his scroll as if waiting for something.

* * *

This had gotten massively out of hand! Grimm in the stadium, Torchwick taking the Knights and Paladins, and The White Fang in full force. This was so much more than just an invasion. Someone was playing a much bigger game and this was the most important move. If the tower goes down like this, the nations will go to war again. Communication will break down and their moves will be impossible to follow in the chaos. He had heard Cinder's voice, but he could tell she would have to be just another piece on the board. She was too young to have made this plan. This would have taken decades of planning and espionage to get just right. As he thought this, he saw Pyrrah push Jaun into a locker and send it away. The look on her face told him she knew something about this. He threw his blade so that it would impale the ground right in front of her. "Alright, Nikkos, You are in a hurry to escape this fight. So why don't you tell me what you are doing?"

She turned to face him and after a worried look, used her semblance to throw the sword from the ground back at him. He caught the blade as it went through the air and followed after a bit slower. If he wanted to know, he would have to let her think she had lost him. It was apparently too urgent to explain before running. Or too important to share. Either way, he wasn't about to let any parts of this plan escape his notice. It would be his only way to follow the trail when the chaos set in. It might be a bit late in the game, but if this chessmaster thought they could get away with this, he was about to make their life hell.

* * *

He motioned to the balcony just as a thud followed by a cry of shock escaped the door he had trapped. When he did, a Schnee company flying transport seemed to drop from the sky like a rock, stopping even with the balcony when Zoge pressed a button on his scroll, "Thank you again, Connie." He was about to motion Weiss toward the vehicle but when the side door opened up, she jumped right in, bringing her bag with her, rapier in hand. Good. That would make the rest of this easier.

As he started his run, he heard a young male voice behind him, "Well, the black sheep returns to the flock. Or perhaps a black lamb-" The young man was caught in the middle of his sentence as Zoge threw a decorative fork from Weiss' dinner at him, an electrical charge carried by Zoge's glove striking him like a tazer. Zoge jumped into vehicle in one fluid motion. He turned to see Jacques' look of mixed rage and surprise. This brought a genuine and overconfident smile to his face. Especially as he saw the guards chiseling themselves out of the ice trap he had left for them.

Jacques shouted, "Just as bad as your father and that boy! You won't get away with this!" He slammed the door shut and went over to the controls. Weiss looked dead ahead as she braced for what she knew would be a hot escape. He cranked the engine power to full and took clean off. He checked the rear camera with poorly hid glee as he watched the guards try and aim a rocket at the ship's engines. With a press of a button on his glove, the jet of air went off again, throwing them from the roof. He flew fast and hard, not looking back. After a small bit, his scroll began to beep and he let out a sigh. He had gotten out of the defense grid's range in time. The plan had worked. Still, he couldn't help but feel bad for what came next, but that wasn't his part in this.

* * *

Zoge entered the library for the first time in years. As he did, the look on his face told the scholars all they needed to know. Elder Aureolin approached him but before he could ask, Zoge began to head for the wing containing myths and fairy tales. Zoge pulled the ladder over as his teacher inquired, "A long way for a bedtime story, Zoge. Especially when so much has changed of you since you left. What became of your quest to become a huntsman?" Zoge paused, looking past the shelf before going back to pulling out books, clearly collecting reading materials. "I have been with you, watched you grow, guided your mind and hand, even when you have not heeded it. That is the same look you had when you began searching our library for signs of your mother. What tragedy drives you to our arms once more?"

Zoge's cold eyes and chilled tone met the kind mentor's own, "A tragedy and a trove of secrets hidden in plain sight. Something lurks in the shadows of this world, and I would know who my opponent is before they realize I've joined the game."

The older man looked at the ground in thought before bowing in proper greeting to his ward and motioning the other monks to aid in collecting books related to the ones he had pulled down. A few went to the forbidden wing of the library, the wing where Zoge had once crippled himself and where secrets deemed too dangerous for the undisciplined lay. Finally, the elder produced a small folded piece of paper from a pocket of his robe. "They will aid you in finding anything you deem necessary. I trust you have learned your lesson." When Zoge gave a nod and eyed the folded paper the elder bowed again, "I believe this will help you in your search for knowledge." The elder walked away with a distant and worried look, the sort that Zoge had last seen before he left to begin his training. A look that filled Zoge with hesitation.

* * *

Eventually, he heard Weiss speak up, "So, where do you intend to take us? Because I doubt Atlas is an option anymore." She let out a sigh of relief of her own like saying those words out loud brought her peace of mind.

Zoge pressed some buttons and let the auto-pilot take over before he turned to face her, "Menagerie." When she looked surprised and worried, he explained, "The voice that prefaced the attack talked about being from Haven academy. Since there is a tower there too, it is their next logical target. Pair that with it being the home of the former head of the White Fang, he makes for the perfect target to solidify their influence. I've heard rumors of a splinter group within the movement that embraces his old ideals so if he were to become moved to return to power, there is no telling how many members they may lose influence over. So, killing him would destabilize the Faunas, driving more to violent revolution and bring the Grimm to the tower..."

Weiss' eyes widened as she realized what he was driving at, "Just like Beacon." When he nodded, she followed it with one of her own. She then looked at the ground and grabbed at the skirt around her knees, "So, why-"

He cut her off and parted the jacket, resting his hands on the hilts of the pair of long swords Kaen had given him. "Because this jacket is all that they could find of him after the fires died down. I sewed my cloak to it." His tone dropped as he lifted his left arm, "He gave me back my life only to lose his. I owe him this much. That means when it became obvious you were in a tight spot, I had to be the one to get you, for his sake." He turned back to the controls to check on everything and make sure they weren't being chased, "So, if you want to go somewhere else, I can drop you off th-"

Weiss spoke up with force, "No. Menagerie is perfect. You are right." She looked at him with the eyes of a huntress, "This isn't going to end with Beacon. And as long as we are around, they won't get away with this." He locked eyes with her and nodded, the two united of mind. No matter what came next, they would not allow these shadowy forces to continue to destroy this world.


	2. Of Olivine Fangs

It was always too cold in here, but it kinda helped her look all serious. Still, it wouldn't hurt to get this place renovated. She sat upon her big scary chair, her sharp catlike eyes looking down at the beast of a man that knelt in front of her. He had various wounds over him and yet he continued to glare defiantly at her. There was a metal tink as she tapped her fingers on her palm in thought, "I'll admit your resilience is impressive, but you have not even begun to see what flavors of pain I have shown your sort." She stood up slowly, her heeled boots landing heavy with purpose. She adjusted her cravat of her attire, loving wearing something that made her look like a long forgotten nobleman. She tugged at her frilled cuffs while the clawed tip of one of her gauntlets fell to the ground. "Tell me, how far will you push me before I get what I want?"

* * *

Olive hated these masks, tugging at it while she went to work wrangling a Razorback without killing it. Her brother looked on with approval. She entangled it in the wire from her glove, making sure not to pull too hard, and dragged it into its cage before a silver wolf faunas closed it up. She grumbled from behind her mask, "I thought we were supposed to out helping the local faunas, Sable."

He chuckled, "Yeah, I lied about that this time. But I promise we can see to that later." When she didn't share his amusement he sighed, "Look, I know that a lot of this bugs you, but you can't be mad about Torchwick while pretending your brother is one of us."

She spat back, "At least he was raised by Faunas. Torchwick is exactly the sort we shouldn't be trusting. Who is calling the shots around here anymore? I haven't seen Adam around, have you?" When the wolf was quiet she nodded and lamented, "The old White Fang wouldn't have been willing to give up their pride to work with the devil."

Sable quickly pulled Olive aside, out of sight where her brother wouldn't see her complain. He then scolded, "The old White Fang wasn't getting the job done, and you know it like the rest of us. How long were they fighting and how many powerful people still do all they can to keep us in the slums and dirt?"

Olive chuckled, "Oh, yeah, that much I know. But, Sable, the walls are gone. They can hate us all they want, but there is nothing that can stop us now, right?" She lifted her mask and winked, "I don't know about you, but I have a plan. Best of both worlds..."

* * *

She sighed as she tugged lightly at the heated wire, removing the tip of the beast's index finger down to his first knuckle, cauterizing it instantly. "You would be surprised how much more painful I can make this. I'm being kind. Now, tell me. Who is holding your chain, beast?"

Holding his hand the stellar jay faunas cried out before turning to glare at her, "You call me a beast but at least I know of loyalty. You and your kind are traitors. Turning on the one group trying to save us from this life! I would rather be loyal on a chain to avenge my people than feral and two-faced like yo-" A wire wrapped around his throat starting to strangle him.

Olive sighed, "You mistake me, beast. Allow me to tell you a tale." She knelt down in front of him, holding his hair so that he had to look her in the eye, "Before, the White Fang were trying too hard to prove their nobility to the humans. That I will agree with, as most fear what they do not understand. But fear is a hell of a drug, but it loses its potency over time. That is why they brought you to me. You were given many alternatives to what comes next. But now, I grow tired of showing you what sort of woman I am. What do you think that means I will do next?" He couldn't get any words out as she nodded as she stood up to walk back to her chair, "I know, it is quite empowering to realize it. Now that I've done all I can do to show you what I'm made of, I will do whatever I find in my heart to do with you. And all you can do is either accept it or deny it, the consequences on your own head." She tugged and the wire around his neck came free without much more than light marks on his neck. "Unshackle him and allow him to move without interference. That is an order."

The guards nodded, walking over to the prisoner, removing his chains and helping him to his feet. As they stepped away, he charged at her only to be stopped dead half-way, a pointed blade sticking out of his chest he tried to turn to face the attacker but died before his head had even begun to turn. His attacker sighed, "You could have asked me, Oli. Why do you keep making me save your life?"

Olive turned to face her with her old smirk, "Because I miss you when you are gone. Besides, I might be a gangster now, but we are fighting for the heart and soul of our people. If I don't give them every chance to come to their senses, I am no better than Taurus." She sat down on her chair and motioned to one of her guards, "Find someone that knew this man so they can take him home for a proper burial." The guard nodded and went over to pick up the body. As he did he nodded his head towards Illia, who nodded ingreeting in return.

Illia motioned the other guard to leave who nodded and left his spear near Olive's chair before he went about his business. She approached the chair with a sigh, "We still don't have a trail and it is only a matter of time before they make their move."

Leaning forward in her chair, Olive allowed herself a chance to put the act aside, "Ghira still won't make a return. He continues to believe them and refuses to look at all we have found. Says that Taurus has gone rogue, just like me." Illia looked to the ground in concern and doubt, but Olive just laughed at that, "Don't worry. When they make their move, we will be there. The Belladonnas, Haven, everyone... we will protect them all as best we can. Show them the true nature of the faunas, whether they like it or not." Illia smiled softly at Olive who returned it with an overconfident smirk.

* * *

Round 1: Team FEMM vs Team KOAL

Olive made sure her shades were secure as she said, "Leave the gaudy magician to me." She ran off before she could hear Zoge chew her out or Amy try to hold her back. She closed the distance between her and her brother, focusing on taking him out and keeping his attention. This worked a shade better than she expected because it looked like he had made the same request before the match.

Peri chuckled as he saw her approach and even let her get close, not bothering to try and use his semblance on her. When she lashed out with her wire gloves, he blocked it with his cape and pulled her closer. He spoke softly as he exchanged a few weak punches with her, "I don't NEED to win this round, sister, so please give me a challenge before the end."

She cut his cape with a quick tug before kicking him in the gut and unleashing a volley of shots from her dust gun that he blocked with the cards he used as a weapon. She asked, "Why? Why do anything you have been? How does this help the faunas?" His eyes opened in surprise, like she should already know and then laughed. Due to this, she popped off a few more shots, a couple getting through his card based defenses before he shuffled a few of the cards and flung them out, forming a sword with them.

"My dear sister, this was never about the faunas. Never about the White Fang. It is about changing the world and who runs it. The woman I follow is the only one worthy to hold such a position and I am the only one worthy to stand at her side. So, if you must make it so crass," He ran forward, knocking her wire away with his blade, "I do this for a form of love you could never understand!"

* * *

Olive stood on the balcony overlooking the courtyard of her hidden fortress and raised her voice so all could hear, glad to see when they all turned to face her, "My friends, they wish to take from us our ideals! They cast aside our pride and dignity, claiming the faces of monsters! Now they seek to destroy those who forged this path for us, finishing their journey by becoming the very beasts that slay our kin all over the world! But we have fought hard to make a place for our families, for our people, and we will not let them rob us of that! Atlas, Mystral, Vale, Vaccuo, it doesn't matter what the humans think or try. We will carry our banners with the pride of all those who came before us and continue to forge this path!" She balled her fist dramatically, gripping tighter than she intended in her own fury over what they were going to try, "Keep saving who you can from their madness before it is too late. Do not hesitate against the beasts that claim our face while they burn this world to the ground as they are on the side of the Grimm! For all those before us and those we care for that will follow after, stay the course and remember the nobility of the Faunas!" When she got a loud cheer from her followers, she nodded and went back into her chamber, Illia waiting for her.

"You have gotten so much better at those. I just wish we didn't have to work alongside the ones we do to get where we are going." Illia got that worried look again but saw Olive's soft smile and couldn't help but echo it back.

"My dear Illia, the difference is that we do what we have to in order to provide food and medicine for those who need it. A few jobs on our terms here and there to open channels like that are important. It might be blood money and it might come from humans, but by being willing to work with them, we open new ways to get information and supplies where they need to be." As she said this, a knock came on the door. Illia nodded and jumped to the ceiling, seeming to vanish. Olive opened the door.

On the other side was another of her undercover agents, "Lady Merlinus, we have news of a shipment. A large supply of explosives are being smuggled by Adam's group." She took the missive from him and looked it over, the agent asking, "Do you think they intend to detonate Ghira's manor?"

Olive folded it up and placed it in her pocket, "Deliver a message to Cardin, to put a rush on it and that he will be repaid upon delivery." The agent nodded and ran off. "So, how much do you trust me, my dear?"

When the door closed, Illia landed and knelt with a smirk, "I would trust you with my life."

Olive didn't turn to face her as she asked, "But would you trust me with your ideals? How far would you be willing to go if I promised you that I would not allow you to fall?"

* * *

"I was there at Beacon's fall! You have to listen!" Olive pleaded at the door to the guards of Ghira's manor.

Their response was just as it had been for the last few days, "You are lucky we don't have you taken care of! You are a criminal and a traitor! Fennec told us all about your record as a spy within the White Fang. Why would we let you in, let alone listen to your lies?"

She tightened her grip on the arms of her shades before throwing them down in disgust. Leaving them there at the door, she made her way back to the place she had once called home, now burned out and empty. As she opened the door she saw Sable pointing his weapon at her. "They sent me to kill you." Olive stood perfectly still, not showing a moment of fear while her former ally hesitated immensely. "Olive, I wanted this to end differently..."

"Then it can, Sable. Put the weapon down. We can make our own group. Save everyone from this madness before it is too late. If we keep going down this road, we will do more than just punish the humans. We will destroy everything, including ourselves. You know that." It wasn't until she noticed he was crying that she saw he had made up his mind.

"They are my family, Olive. I can't betray them. They are all I have left."

Olive sighed, "Then this is how the White Fang die. Monsters leading the pack because the nobility of the faunas has given way to fear." She closed her eyes and turned away, "If this is how it is going to end, you might as well shoot me in the back like the coward you are." She could hear him crying for quite a long time before it suddenly stopped. A few moments later, she felt the point of a blade at her spine. "Well, at least a knife is more precise than your morning star. Thanks for that."

A female voice asked her, "What do you know of the nobility of the faunas? Why do think you can claim to be better than the rest of us?"

Olive replied, "Because the White Fang I knew inspired me to be a huntress, and this White Fang took that from me. The White Fang I knew was strong enough to keep doing the right thing, even when everyone hated them. This White Fang does the wrong thing when they have everything in their favor. When the Grimm came, they turned the human weapons on innocent people. I would rather die protecting people then becoming that kind of monster."

"So, you are ready to die then?"

"I am. Are you ready to kill me?"

* * *

Olive sat on her chair, laying across it with her legs over one of the arms and resting her head on her own arm as she saw Saber walk in, "Well, Olive, I came like you asked."

She nodded, "Did you get the supplies we sent?" When he nodded she sighed, "Good. Did the medicine treat the sickness that was going around?" He nodded again. "I'm relieved. The last thing we needed was a sickness in such close quarters. You may now leave if you choose."

He grumbled, "Why invite me to your secret stronghold just to ask those questions?"

"As a show of trust, Saber. What may come next requires it. We have reason to believe that Ghira may be getting targeted by dark forces. As you know, something like this is too important for me to not look after it myself. I need your word that should I choose to walk among the people you will not tell anyone that I am there."

He seemed to hesitate but nodded, "Your agents have been really helping keep us afloat. Promise me you won't cause any problems and I will make my promise in return."

She nodded, "I will not start any trouble, but if trouble should find me I will end it as quickly and peacefully as I can. You have my word on my honor as a faunas." He nodded in confirmation and left the chamber. She closed her eyes and began to nap. Now she just needed some idea of what they wanted.


	3. Of Winter Blossoms

'It is best she not use her eyes for now.'

'It may never return the the way it was.'

'She may have to choose other career paths.'

As if anyone would ever find a use for a blind noble that Amy would ever accept. She lay in her bed as she had every day, the memories of Beacon kept fresh in part to the bandages they had wrapped around her eyes. A place that once smelled of beautiful flowers tended by her mother now smelled of stagnation. Nothing ever changed here. Not even her. A place of 'healing' held forever in the present moment. The moment where she lay here with all her dreams and hopes shattered. They say it had only been a week or two, but it felt like an eternity. Nothing but darkness and the smell of flowers. She tried to sleep, unsure if she had been successful on her previous attempts or had been awake for days without knowing it. She could feel her tears soaking her bandages as she shook from the sorrow. What was the point in moving? There was nothing left for her anymore.

* * *

Amy opened up her eyes as she looked up at Kaen in his hopsital bed. He laughed a little at her, "I told you, I'll be fine. I'll just need some time to adjust. With my semblance, infections aren't really a concern. I can just burn them out."

She scolded him, "You don't get to laugh this off so easy! You aren't able to move like you did before. With how you live, being down an arm changes everything!" She leaned back in her chair, not realizing how close she had moved to the bed. He just laughed again, softly and kindly. So much so she couldn't help but join in.

Eventually he asked, "So, I asked Connie about your grandma, she sounds like an amazing hero!" Amy froze up at the mention, memories starting to come back but they were stopped when his tone became soothing, "She went out to save you, even when everyone told her no. Even when it could cost her everything. Sounds like she really loved you." Amy paused as that slowly sank further into her heart. "You chose a really good role model and I know she would be proud of your skill." She turned to him slowly as she heard his voice get a bit more slurred to realize he was falling back asleep. Probably the painkillers. Still, seeing him lay back with that dopey smile on his face made her feel all warm inside.

* * *

'She isn't taking visitors right now!'

'No, you can't just talk to her for a second.'

'You can't keep her locked in here forever!'

'I am head of my own home! I don't answer to you!'

Fighting. It sounded like Connie. But why would she be here? Amy didn't have anything left. She was not a huntress and she never would be. It was then that she heard the voice of a ghost. It said, "Try removing the bandages. Just to see if they were telling you the truth." She couldn't remember them ever saying those words. Her curiosity caused her to reach for them, but she hesitated, eventually putting such thoughts away. Her father had never lied to her before. Still, she couldn't shake the nagging fear in her head. The ghost gave a heavy sigh, their tone more disappointment than any frustration, "I suppose you will do it in your own time."

As she face planted in her bed she felt a strong grip on her arm give a powerful tug. She could hear the voice her her eldest brother accompany it, "Am, get up and come with me."

"I'm bedridden and blind, Burg! I can't do that!" She protested before she felt herself get lifted out of her bed and a sudden warm but muscular form was beneath her.

"That wasn't a request soldier. Now stay quiet." He moved quite quietly for someone as tall and bulky as him. Still, she could feel every muscle move and tense with purpose as he seemed to be trying to get her somewhere specific without alerting their father. After a time, he eventually stopped and placed her on her feet. He then moved her arms in front of her at an angle before the familiar grip of a practice sword was slipped into her hands. She looked ready to complain but he cut her off, "You were always better with a blade than the rest of us. You don't need your eyes or your semblance to do it."

She asked out of curiosity, "How can I fight if I can't see my opponent?"

He laughed before going quiet for a minute. After awhile she felt an immense heat coming from above her, that heat becoming a sharp pain on her head a second later. He spoke sternly, "I know you felt that. See, grandma used to teach us like this before she left." Again she felt the second of heat, this time above her shoulder before she felt the sudden pain of being hit with a practice blade. "Dad refused to let us use this method with you because he worried it would remind you of grandma, but now is literally the perfect time."

This time, when she felt the heat, she turned and put her hand out to it, feeling her palm sting upon contact with the weapon in question. "It isn't like you to disobey father. Why are you risking his wrath, Burg?" She gripped the practice sword as tight as she could as she tried to fight the tears. It was here she felt the heat from above again, but mistook it as sunshine before the pain returned again.

Burg laughed behind her, "Actually, that is Lav." She reached out to touch the figure holding the blade only to feel the lean muscle of the younger brother. "We are using Grandmother's old rose garden. Father refuses to come here anymore."

She heard Lavender speak with his usual teasing tone, "I can tell from your grip that you wore your training kimono while at Beacon like I told you. That is going to make this a piece of cake then." She looked back and forth between the two voices, trying to attune her ears to hear for their breathing or something, but she couldn't. Lav sighed, "As for why, we know you want to become a huntress more than anything. You always did from the moment you picked up a blade. What kind of brothers would we be if we didn't take the heat so you could take back your life?"

Amy felt the heat and stepped out of the way, tripping on her own feet a little and landing on her butt, dropping her sword. A moment later she could feel the handle in her hand again and being picked up by it. He spoke with force, "But at the end of the day, we can only help you if you want to learn." She gripped the handle tightly, crying clean through her bandages until she could feel them sticking to her face. She could feel both her brothers hugging her tightly, letting her get it all out of her system.

* * *

She sat on the bench watching Zoge and Kaen give his prosthetic a test run, the two both dual wielding swords. One was precise and exacting with his strikes, wasting as little energy as possible but being oddly predictable in his clockwork nature. The other was not only a wildcard, but a total savage. A clearly defined form, but one that was so rough and primal that it could change at any moment. As she watched she would occasionally use her semblance to slow it down and watch their form, trying to learn what she could. It was about this time that Pyrrha sat down next to her to watch the match. Amy only noticed when she spoke up, "They truly are amazing to watch." When Amy jumped in surprise, the red haired warrior simply waved in return.

Amy stammered a little not sure how long her fellow huntress had been there. "Um, y-yeah." Upon seeing her attention shift to the fight, Amy sat back down and went back to watching before eventually settling down enough to have a conversation, "Kaen has this raw energy when he fights. He isn't the most graceful, but that's almost a part of his charm. How do you fight someone who could change their mind entirely mid-swing and decide to do a reverse elbow or from a diagonal swipe to trying to run you through?"

Pyrrha smirked as she teased, "His charm, you say." Amy got a bit of color but refused to look over at her, when suddenly her tone got more serious. "I know what you mean. There is something honest about them, even when they fight. They are less worried about victory or winning than they are of making a mistake."

Amy turned with a soft but knowing smile, now at ease as she teased, "They, you say." Now Pyrrha was the one refusing eye contact. When Olive joined the fight to spread a bit of her version of fun, Amy finally continued to speak to Pyrrha, "If I admire his honest nature, then why..."

She stopped herself but it didn't take her fellow huntress more than a second to answer that thought, "Maybe it is because they are so honest. Maybe," she looked at the tiles on the walkway in front of them, "We like to think that if they did, we would know already. Maybe, we are scared that if we told them, they might tell us what we already know." Amy couldn't help but nod at this before tuning back into the world and seeing Olive running off into a crowd with Kaen's new arm tucked under her own. Amy stood up, running after her in hopes of saving her from the beating that was bound to ensue.

* * *

'The Lady of Winter Blossoms cannot hold an audience with you.'

'Lady Violet is seeing to important matters this day.'

'Lord Wynne is currently at court.'

'The Lord of Summer Harvests will attend to this matter.'

Amy sat across from her mother, drinking silently from her tea, listening to what she assumed to be citizens seeking someone to aid them in their hour of need. Odd they would request Amy first. Seemed like Burg was going to handle it. No training today then. Suddenly she heard her mother's voice again, "What is your opinion, Amaranthine?" Amy took another drink to buy herself time, but she could tell her mother wasn't fooled, "You are fortunate that I hadn't said anything deserving an opinion. Tell me, am I so boring that the daily affairs of our castle are more interesting to you?"

Amy put her cup down as she let out a sigh. She didn't know how to respond, but her mother seemed more than capable of finding them for her, "I imagine Beacon still weighs heavy on your mind." Her mother's voice grew sad as she continued, "I was worried when you told me you wanted to become a huntress. You have always been such a gentle and kind soul. I worried that training for war would make you more... like her. When I heard about what happened at Beacon, I was beside myself with grief. Your father tried to console me, but it just didn't settle until you were safely home." She laughed darkly, "When you got here, I thought I knew what you needed. Your father seemed to agree with me, but nothing seemed to make you feel better. I didn't know what else to do. That was when I spoke to your brothers." Amy jolted at this comment, her mother laughed lightly, "I have noticed you are a little more… lively since whatever they are doing. Did they take you to tend to Rosa's flowers? I have found it soothing since she left."

Amy shook her head, realizing that she could never bring herself to lie to her mother, "No. Since I can't see, I would never be able to see what I was doing." Her mother made a sound like she wanted to say something but elected to let Amy finish, "They were once trained how to fight without using their eyes. It… it helps but it isn't enough." She gripped her robes with frustration, "I wasn't good enough. I saw the blood, the bodies, the chaos. I froze up. I couldn't overcome it. I failed."

She felt her mother put her hand on her shoulder in silence trying to relax her and slowly she began to feel her emotions settle. "My dear lovely Amaranthine, I have spent most of your life attempting to protect your gentle soul. I wanted to keep you from this world, like the flowers in my garden." She sighed, "But you were never born for decoration. Like your father, you were born a wild flower destined to show your beauty to the world." She patted her on the shoulder and stated "I see now the error of my misplaced desire. Can you forgive me, my precious daughter?"

Amy grabbed her hand gently, finding peace in this moment as she nodded in confirmation. Her mother came closer and hugged her gently, like being enclosed in a flower petal. It was soothing, relaxing. It felt like a very long time since she had been this at peace.

* * *

Amy sat on the roof just outside the window. Their own little team balcony. She couldn't get in through the door because of the guards, so she sat here, too afraid to knock on the window. Instead she leaned so she could see inside the window. He sat there, staring at the now cold furnace, missing the arm he and Zoge had made together. She watched, seeing his heart laying in pieces on the floor and not being sure what to do. With a moment's hesitation, she reached for the window, wanting to reassure him, wanting to help make it better. Wanting to tell him how she felt, as she touched the handle and hesitated, she felt a basketball hit her in the back of the head, pushing her down just enough to turn the handle and tumbling into the room. As she did, he turned in surprise and knelt down to check on her, "Amy, you shouldn't be here."

She looked up at him, seeing those sad gentle eyes she had seen so often behind his smile. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, much to his surprise and hugged him, mostly to hide her tears. "Don't say anything. I don't want to hear it."

She was about to open her mouth and say something, anything that might help when he pulled her close with his arm. "I'm sorry, Am. You deserve better than a fraud like me." She could feel his heart beating, and his ragged breathing. She could tell she wasn't the only one hiding their face. "I'm no huntsman, and I'm no hero. Just some kid who got in over his head."

She hugged him tight enough to stop him from going further, "Kaen, you are so much more than that. You," She sobbed, "You are our leader! You make us smile when it is hard. When we are in doubt, you make us believe its possible for things to change." Her voice caught in her throat as she continued, "You may not be a hero to you, but you are one to me." She released the hug, turning away before he could see her face, "When everything is over, I know Connie can help us sort this out. Until then, we will keep going so Team KOAL is ready when their leader gets back." When she heard the guards on the other side of the door, she decided now was the perfect chance to escape, so she jumped out the window, slamming them shut behind her, tears streaming out behind her.

* * *

'Ams, Get down!'

'How cute. You can die together.'

'Amy, run!'

'KAEN!'

She jolted upright in her bed, covered in sweat. Another nightmare. She tore off the bandages, for once unable to escape the images upon waking. She knew she shouldn't but she needed anything else to watch. Anything other than that moment. As she did, she looked down with blurry vision at her own hands. Even now she could tell how much they were shaking. As her vision adjusted, she looked around her seemingly plain and empty room. Once a place of peace now just a glorified hospital room. It wasn't until she saw a dusty envelope resting atop her dresser that she stood up. Being able to see her limbs made moving a bit more disorienting, but she was managing it through the shaking. As she did she swore she heard the ghost again, "Good. Now face the world reborn with your own two eyes, no matter how ugly it seems." Amy ran to the window, swearing she heard the voice from there. There was no one at the window, but she did see a familiar pink haired figure walk into the woods outside of the compound.

Amy got chills. Of course her grandmother couldn't stay away after what happened, but how long had she been there? Did her brothers use that because of her? As she was asking herself this, Burg came to the door. She turned to see the red haired swordsman staring in surprise. She tried to smile at first, but as her eyes rested on his hair, she felt a wave of panic and nausea. She looked at her hands to, see them shaking like mad before her legs gave out. He ran over to her tying his headband around her eyes. She asked, "How long has grandma been here?"

He put a hand to her forehead and let out a sigh of relief before he replied, "Guess we know why they had your eyes covered. Rosa has not been seen in our lands in years." He moved to the window and let out a second sigh, this time of disappointment, "I miss her too, but she was exiled. Coming back would just make things worse than they already are."

"But she was here, Burg! My eyes are fine!" Amy pulled at the headband only to have her brother pull it tighter. A new person entered and Amy couldn't help but ask, "Is that you Lav? Did you see her?"

The response was a powerful and deep voice, "Burgundy, leave your sister and I alone to speak." The older sibling hesitated but eventually left. Her father asked her, "Did you remove your bandages?"

"I heard you say that I couldn't use my eyes. You lied to me." Her tone was disappointed and accusing.

He let out a heavy sigh but kept his powerful tone, "The doctor spoke with me. Said you were unresponsive at the hospital and that whenever you saw the color red you would begin to panic and become highly uncooperative. In some cases you would have literal heart attacks. We agreed that it was best for your health if we didn't take that risk. Your eldest brother was the most broken by this. I would never lie to you, my dearest daughter. Everything I do is for your safety."

Amy stood up, her hands finally steady enough to untie the headband from her eyes, removing it to lock eyes with her father. "I'm done with your protection, father! You and mom spent my entire life treating me like I was made of glass. Something to be kept away from the world. I-"

He bellowed, "And every time!" he collected himself, "Every time I have ever let you out of my sight, you have come face to face with the worst evils of this world. And every time you come out the other side with scars and pain I can't fix. I see you walk around here with the weight of a world I never wished upon you." She didn't know how to reply to this, feeling like she was little again, being scolded for breaking a priceless family vase. "You lost your grandmother because of this world. You lost your friends and your school because of this world. You have always been a kind soul. I didn't want bitterness and pain to take that away from you and kill my loving daughter." He sighed, "If you will not stop this foolish idea, then I will have to. If you ever want to leave my abode again, you will have to best me. Only when you have beaten me in combat will I accept that the daughter I raised is no more." She tried to respond only to have him put up his hand, "Until then, I refuse to speak further on this matter." He turned with purpose and walked out of the room, leaving Amy alone with her thoughts.

She went over to the envelope that rested on her dresser, opening it up. As she went to remove the letter, something fell out. Looking down at it, she saw a pin baring each of their colors and symbols. She looked at it nervously, but after a moment, she picked it up. As she started to read the letter, she felt something forming in her gut.

* * *

Amy ran along the now burning halls of Beacon, trying to rush as many people as she could to the evac point, striking down any Grimm that crossed her path as she did so. She could feel the adrenaline was the only think keeping her together right now. She turned the corner to see a young family trying to hide in some of the rubble of the cafeteria. As she began her approach, they seemed to become more and more scared at something in there with them. The young child with them broke free of their mother's arms, making a break for the door only for a scarlet blade to strike the child down. Amy tried to block it out, getting in the way just fast enough to intercept his strike. She looked at the red haired swordsman who smirked at her, "Oh? So, you think your blade can match mine, do you?"

She broke the clash, hoping to have gained his focus only to see him easily end the parents with a single swipe of his blade, their blood scattering across the rubble. Amy's shaking hands gave away the dizziness such a sight was putting her through. She tried to look at him, but he seemed to be at the end of a long tunnel. Her fear was thick in the air. The red haired warrior, seemed to close the distance impossibly fast before knocking the blade from her hand, sending it across the room. She fell back in surprise only to find his blade at her neck. As she stared down this devil, she could feel everything but the colors of the flames and him fading away. This was how it ended. She heard what happened next, but it wouldn't sink in until much later. All she could see at the time was the red haired man looking to above her before smirking. In a moment, he was gone, and then next came Kaen's body, his flaming aura seeping from the wounds where his legs used to be. She felt someone pull on her robes just before the red haired man took to the air, bringing his scarlet blade point first through Kaen's fallen form.

The rest was a blur, but that hair, that blade, red as the blood he spilled.

* * *

'The shadows of the past can't control our future'

'We will always carry them with us.'

'Our chains only make our successes that much bigger'

'Nothing can ever take away our bonds as they are just as permanent.'

Amy stood in the garden with her eyes closed, feeling the wind blowing past her, sensing everything around her. She held the practice sword out, taking a deep breath. She opened her eyes, beginning her exercises, feeling the rush of nausea as she stared at the roses surrounding her, each seeming to glow just like that night. Fighting it off, she moved quickly and with precision unlike any she had ever done before. Methodical and precise with a current of primal energy following in the wake of every swing. Switching to the defensive wasn't very hard when Lav sprung from the flower beds behind her, intercepting each of his blows. It wasn't until Burg joined in that she could feel the pressure. A foe in front, a foe behind, and each as skilled as her surrounded by what might as well be a sea of blood.

'Face the world reborn with your own two eyes, no matter how ugly it seems.'

She found a moment amid the flurry of blows to collect herself, closing her eyes to follow the attacks. She could feel the flow of combat, surprised that the defensive was so much easier without looking at her opponents. Opening them up once more, she almost felt that she was looking past them. Stepping clear of their blows, she got them both in front of her. The two moved as a well practiced team, but even then, she found predicting their blows to be oddly simple. She tried to activate her semblance to see if that was what was doing it, but instead found the match to start moving painfully slow. She decided this was as good an excuse as any to bring an end to this session, stepping between their blows only to knock both of their blades out of their hands, watching them sail off as she stepped past them. As the world returned to normal speed she didn't look as she heard the two different practice swords fall into the rosebed. Her brothers saw her actively not looking at the roses and grew somewhat concerned.

She motioned them to stand back and got into their father's quick draw pose. As they stepped back to keep their distance, she swung quickly, slicing the blooms off of every rose around her, knocking the lost swords into the air in the same motion. Her eyes flashed with their old light as she saw the world slow down. All the blooms seemed to float on an invisible wind. She quickly tapped the fallen blades with the flat of her own, to send them towards her brothers. Staring at the red blooms and stray petals she tried to hit every last one of them out of the air. While her eyes did not increase her speed, but she was beginning to see the extra precision she could get when everything held so perfectly still for her. Swinging her blade was like fighting underwater, but the effect was no less potent.

Lav stared in disbelief while Burg caught both the blades, tapping Lav on the head with it. "And that, that right there, is why I told you I have to work harder than either of you." Lav raised his arms in question only to get laughed at. The older brother patted her back with pride as she turned to face him with a weak smirk. "Okay, so you aren't fully recovered, but I'm sure as hell impressed." He mused as he looked at the fallen petals, "I think she would be impressed too, despite the damage."

Amy asked the important question, "Do you think it is enough to beat father?" Her brother seemed to drop silent and lose his glow. She knew he was strong, but this was enough, right? She nodded and restated, "It will be enough. It has to be." She walked out of the garden with purpose, despite her brother's hesitation. She started for the front gate of the compound, only to see her father walk in front of her, hand on his blade. "You would strike down your own daughter?"

Wynne shook his head as the Winchester family stepped out in confusion. "An expert swordsman does not require anything other than their blade to achieve victory. A master swordsman can defeat a foe without drawing a drop of blood." He threw her a weapon she had not seen before. A new katana in a rich purple sheath and the symbol of her house inlaid in gold near the hilt. "But I am past even that." She reached for it before he bellowed a warning at her. "If you take up that blade, do not hold anything back. If you fight me without resolve then you will lose, even with your semblance." She locked eyes with him and upon realizing how serious he was, she kicked the blade into the air, grabbing it out of the air and putting it into the perfect position to block her father's blow a mere second later.

His attacks were faster than any she had faced before and the precision was unbelievable. She was managing to deflect him but just barely. Somewhere in the flurry, he threw a roll of red ribbon, taking a leap back to keep his stance and give some space to read her. Amy could feel the pressure, the nausea coming back, her face going pale at the red, as the ribbons scattered across her shoulders and head. Seeing this as a sign of weakness, he moved in and knocked the sheathed blade out of her hand, sending it skittering across the floor. She ripped the ribbons off herself, staring at him in shock. He sighed, "Your resolve is lacking. You can still only see your opponent in front of you, the challenge in front of you. I lack your gift, but my resolve is why the foes of these lands fear me. Until you discover that resolve, do not pick up that weapon again."

She stood up, taking one of the red ribbons into her hand. Walking over to the weapon on the ground, she tied the ribbon to the handle, pulling it up by the ribbon. Pointing the sheathed blade at him she stated, "I will not draw a blade upon my own father. But I will not allow you imprison me in my own home." Wynne stopped, turning to face her and sheathed his blade. Giving it a test tug, he untied it from his belt and took up his stance. It was clear from his face that he wasn't looking at her but more that he was looking past her. Or perhaps looking at everything. She took a deep breath, and realized he was right. She had been so focused on beating him, fighting him, that she had forgotten the resolve she got from that letter. She allowed her free hand to rest on the pin she had put on her chest before taking her stance and nodding her head.

The two warriors came at each other with great speed and dexterity, the loud clacks of the sheaths hitting each other filled the entire estate. Watching him like this, fighting him like this, she realized he wasn't fighting with all he had. She couldn't tell if he was holding back not to kill her or if this was the level he expected her to fight at before she left. Either way, she had to win. Team KOAL wouldn't let this break them. No distance could break their will or the will of Beacon. They were Huntsmen. Times like these are what they were destined for. Activating her semblance, she slowed his moves as much as possible, seeing a chance to disarm him. With a twirl of her wrist, she managed to get it free of his grip, surprised at how smooth that went. Just as the strain was starting to get to her, she noticed him reaching with his second hand to catch the blade. Preparing to strike it away as time resumed, she noticed he quickly pulled his hand back and struck her upon the shoulder with his hand, dropping her to the ground.

"I am not like your brothers. I am not so easy to defeat, child. Nor am I foolish enough not to use your special ability against you. Your confidence in it isn't misplaced, but to underestimate your fo-" he was caught by surprise by her striking him in the gut with the hilt of her blade from the ground, causing him to stumble back. As she kicked his blade into her free hand, he dropped into a martial stance to fight hand to hand. Instead, she tossed the sheathed blade to him. He caught it and upon looking in her eyes, he seemed to have seen what he was looking for. "I concede. You may not be as ready as I would like, but I now see a part of me in yourself. I trust you will be fine."

Amy drew the blade out of curiosity and couldn't help but let a chuckle escape her. "You turned my sheath into the chamber."

He nodded, stating, "Winter Lily has many secrets waiting for you that I know you will make the most of."

Amy hugged him and smiled softly, "Father, I've always been like you. Once I make up my mind, I fight until I get there. And when I see anyone I care about hurting, all I want to do is fix it." She released the hug, putting her new weapon on her belt, the red ribbon still flowing with the wind. "But I'm not you, mom, or grandma. And the people I care about are out there hurting in a world that is falling apart. I can't stay."

He nodded solemnly, seeming to know even better than her. "Young lord Winchester, I'm sure you know of my daughter." Cardin stepped into view and nodded in acknowledgment of her, "Your bravery and the dire crisis has earned the aid of my house, but the Lady of the Winter Blossoms would better serve your needs in Mistral. Would your benefactor be willing to accept this arrangement?"

Cardin nodded, "While I would still appreciate some basic weapons in that shipment, I'm sure my benefactor would be more than pleased with Lady Amaranthine to join them." He had seemed to mellow out since the fall of Beacon. She was glad to see such a gentle and kind expression from such an arrogant man. She nodded in respect. "I will give you time to gather your travel supplies and await you in the transport out front." With a nod from both members of House Salvia, Cardin bowed with respect as he excused himself. Amy gave her father one more lingering hug, feeling his warm gentle smile in return before she broke it and ran to her room to go pack.

When she got back to her room, she saw something on her bed she didn't remember leaving there. Moving closer to investigate, she couldn't help but smile softly at it. A hand stitched uniform of a House Salvia Swordswoman, perfectly to her measurements with armored shoulders that were a very light pink. The robe was a rich violet with gold trim. The symbol of her house was embroidered on the chest, and upon flipping it over she she saw the logo from the pin. She held it close to her face causing a note to fall out of it. There was no name, but she didn't need one.

'The world isn't kind, but you can be. Never let the ugliness break you. You have the strength to break through the darkness, like a flower that blooms in the dead of winter. It is time you show them just how resilient my little Winter Blossom can be.'

Amy changed into her new outfit attaching the pin to the lining again. Packing the rest of her things quickly, she brought her luggage down. Unlike when she left for beacon, her entire family saw her off at the gate. After they each took their turns hugging her, Burg whispered in her ear, "Don't worry. We will keep Vale in one piece until you come back." She laughed a little at that. As she stepped out the gate, she turned one last time to bow in respect to her family and joined Cardin in the transport.

Once they were in the air, Cardin sighed, "There was a lot I couldn't tell your father about my benefactor. But you know her well and if my dealings with her have taught me anything it is that she will be thankful to know you are doing okay, and you might be one of the few people who she can trust." Amy looked at him puzzled with him responding, "You might not recognize her at first, so I'll explain on the way." She leaned forward with interest as he caught her up to speed.


	4. Of Contrasting Souls

She sat at the table in the cold grey room, a light hanging by a single thread from the ceiling and those crappy chains to turn it on with. As cliché as this was, she was impressed that they managed to clean the blood off the walls. Eventually the door swung open and the temperature dropped dramatically. Winter glared at her, trying to hide the wounded pride beneath the surface. Winter circled her once, as if trying to size her up. Connie spat the blood from her cheek from the last 'questioner' before she chuckled, "If you are looking to break off a piece Winny, you could have asked years ago."

Winter spoke coldly, not acknowledging Connie's comment, "You aided a foreign agent in kidnapping the daughter of one of Atlas' elite. You accomplished this by hijacking a military transport, making black market modifications to the vehicle in question, and using your sway as a huntress to gain an audience with head of said household as a diversion while the agent escaped with his target. Is this correct?"

Connie laughed derisively, "Are you so whipped they can't take your word for it, Winny? I mean you were there." The look of disgust Connie gave Winter was only matched by the cold dismissive stare she got in return. "Then again, I suppose they can't let Jimmy's biggest admirer call ALL the shots, can they? How is the old drunk?" Winter, slammed her hands on the table, staring down the jaded mercenary.

* * *

Connie sat in the training chamber in Beacon, staring into her scroll as the two boys sparred in front of her. "Look, Jimmy, I know the White Fang are making moves. I even have someone on the inside giving me what they can get. But someone isn't talking to someone else because there is a lot of set up with very little explanation. Whatever they are planning, they are being real quiet about it."

James put a hand to his chin and nodded, "Thank you again for your diligence, . I believe I know what to do. But, please do be careful. I don't want you getting in too deep."

She waved her hand dismissively, "James, I'll be fine. You trained me really well. Even my insider has an out of any trouble. And I told you to call me by my first name."

He seemed to drop the professional act for a minute and said, "Contrassa, I'm not concerned about your training, but rather your targets. If even you aren't sure what their end game is, then I don't have many choices moving forward. Are you certain that their plan will happen at the festival?"

Connie sighed and shrugged, "I would call it a gut feeling. I mean, it would be a perfect time to slip into town undetected with a large enough crowd for the White Fang to make a statement. I think the only part that is bothering me is that it doesn't seem like the White Fang themselves are calling the shots. My intel implies that they are just hired guns with an axe to grind."

James broke eye contact in the way he used to when he was hiding confidential intel from her. But she wasn't his student and she wasn't his soldier anymore. Just as she was about to ask, one of the swords flew from the sparring ring right past her, nearly hitting her. "Hey! Watch it!"

* * *

Winter dismissed the guard as Connie laughed, "Oh, intend to get frisky? Well, I mean, prison rules I suppo-" She was smacked hard across the face, which caused her to laugh, "I didn't know you like it rough, Winny."

Winter shouted, "Why did you do this?! She is my SISTER! I've known you a long time, but I never thought you would do something like this!" She looked on the brink of tears, more wounded than she had let on in front of her soldiers.

Connie leaned forward, seemingly becoming serious, "He came to me with a plan, an explanation, and a goal. Your sister knows the same thing that the rest of us do. There is something wrong. We should be out there fixing it, not hiding behind our borders and pretending everything is okay. Maybe you would realize it too if you weren't constantly hiding behind your rank and orders."

Winter looked a bit confused at her words and asked through the tears, "She wanted you to kidnap her?"

Connie shrugged, "I'm not saying that. I am saying that she chartered a flight out to Mistral before we came along and, offered an alternative." She chuckled, "See, we aren't bound by the endless demands of people who would rather ignore hell until it came to their doorstep. Because of that, they may never live to see it, and that is how it should be."

* * *

Connie kicked James' door open like a storm, her fury blazing. He turned to her with a smile stating, "Apparently, you have forgotten how to knock, Contrassa." Seeing her fury he raised a bemused brow, "I've grown used to your complaints but I can tell this one has weight. What is it?"

"What is it? WHAT IS IT? James! Look at those streets! Lined with Knights! This isn't Atlas and this isn't some gun show! Why did you bring GUNS to a festival? You are just making things worse!" Connie hated this. She knew her former mentor rather well, but this? This was too far.

His measured reply was as a father reassuring a daughter after reading her diary, "Connie, I wish there was another way. With the information you provided, this was the only path I could take to ensure that everyone was safe. You aren't the first to question this action, but can you really deny that these units are not enough to take any Grimm that might come, or even the White Fang."

She couldn't deny his claims but it just bothered her. Something about this seemed like it was the worst possible move. She grumbled, "I am sorry, sir. I just... I don't like it. It feels like a bad move. But I'm not a soldier, like you."

As Connie went to leave, trying to tell herself she was imagining it, James sighed, "If there was any other way to ensure their safety, you know I would do it in a heartbeat, Connie." She nodded, so he continued, "If it makes you feel better, Winter is here." Connie perked up causing a warm smile to cross his face, "Enjoy yourself and the festival. You have earned it, and I know that if anything happens, you will be the first to step up." She glanced over her shoulder with a wry smile and nodded, waving dismissively over her shoulder as she walked out the door. He was probably right. This was probably the only move.

* * *

Winter paced the room, filled with mixed emotions, shouting, "Why can't you just do things properly? You have done this my whole life! I try so hard and then you just come in and shatter everything I've worked so hard to build! Why would you betray our trust this way? Why would you betray me this way?"

"To send a message, Winter." The mercenary sighed, "You never got it. I abandoned my home, my family, and my nation. I did so because I saw how dead it had all become. An empty shell without purpose or soul. I left to do things my own way. To make a name for myself and do what no one else in this forsaken nation would." She pointed to Winter with purpose, "No one but Ironwood, and you. You two dared to hope, and now where are you? Trapped in Atlas instead of trying to track down the people who destroyed an entire academy during the largest event of the year and destroying a tower." She looked at the table, "If fighting an endless, pointless, uphill battle is how you want to live your life, go right on ahead. In the meantime, I'm going to try and get something done that might actually make a difference."

Winter shouted, "What are you saying?!" Her tears streaming anew.

Connie hated to see her this way so she refused to look, "I'm saying that I tried to play your game before I left. There is no point. That is why all I've ever wanted was for you to join me. Give up trying to save a system that doesn't appreciate you and will only care for you until you have nothing left to give. But all you have ever cared about is getting the approval of Ironwood." When Winter looked at the table, Connie continued, "I know he is the closest thing to an actual father either of us have ever known, but they will eat him alive just like everyone else. I know you have already seen it in him. I don't want it to happen to you."

Winter stood up straight, returning to her cold demeanor for a moment, walking out without another word. Connie her the bolt slide into place as she was left alone with her thoughts.

* * *

Connie looked at the envelope with a raised brow. Kaen looked so proud of himself. "Alright, so let me get this straight. You and Z got enough things together to build an arm for you, so you used it to help you make… what?" Kaen motioned her to open the envelope. When she did she found a letter and a pin with the family symbols for each of the kids. She turned it over. Seeing his optimistic look, she rolled her eyes and attached the pin to a bit of her coat, "There, that make you happy?"

He gave a big thumbs up and a cheesy smile, "You can read the letter later, but yeah! I want you to know everywhere you go that you are one of us. You have been so kind to all of us. I thought you might like it."

She heard the snooty voice of her longtime friend over her shoulder, "Aw, that is so cute. I never imagined you as a teacher, Contrassa."

Connie did a motor mouth motion with her hand before fake shooting herself in the head before she turned to face Winter, "I don't want to hear it from you." Before he could take offense, Connie patted him on the back, "Thanks, tho. It feels nice to have grown my family out here. Just... keep your head on your shoulders, hero." He nodded and ran off to get ready for his match.

Winter smiled at her and bumped Connie with her shoulder, "Make you rethink his offer?"

Connie shook her head as she ran a hand through her hair, "I'm not built for structure, Win. Grew up with way too much. If I don't have room to breathe, I might as well be buried alive."

"You know he would never do that to you. It doesn't have to be chains. How do you build a house without blueprints and a foundation?"

The roguish smirk came in response, "It is called an Igloo and we both learned about them in survival class. Practical, easy to build, and really handy when trying to survive inhospitable places."

Winter scoffed at this as Connie put out her tongue. After a moment, Winter sighed, "I am glad that you have found a group of kids to look after. I always thought you would be good with kids." The moment lingered before Winter asked, "You ever consider opening a school of your own? Sending a fresh batch of lunatics into the system?"

She rolled her eyes and looked at her military minded friend, but relented a little, "I've thought about it, but never in Atlas. I wouldn't wish that hell on anyone else." The two stood together as they watched everyone go in for the next round of the tournament, just enjoying this time together.

* * *

Connie heard the bolt slide and expected Winter to return but looked up shocked when she saw Ironwood himself. She looked away, clearly pissed. "The drunken chief himself. What do you want, Oh Glorious Master?" He sat down across from her, silent. She refused to look at him. She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction, but the longer he sat there the more angry she got. Why wasn't he chewing her out? Why wasn't he yelling? What was with him? Was he judging her? She locked eyes with him and yelled, "If you are trying to play good cop, it would help if you undid my damned cuffs!"

He stared into her eyes for a minute before standing up and doing just that. Sitting back down he spoke softly, "Contrassa, you are aware that doing what you did means, right?" She refused to acknowledge him. She didn't owe him anything. Not after what he did. All the people he put at risk because of his own pride, or perhaps his own powerlessness. He nodded, "Normally, at a time like this, I would keep you locked up until we knew who you worked for, who your allies were, and everything you know until we get her back." She heard a drink being poured, not having realized he had brought some booze with him. Booze and two glasses. He poured her a drink and pushed it towards her, then poured another and pushed it towards her again.

Connie grabbed one and downed it before asking, "If you want to offer me a job, you can shove it up your ass, Jim. With everything that has happened after Beacon, I'm not interested."

He nodded, "I am not doing those things, because I already know all the answers, that you would give and the truth. Instead, I came here to ask you something else." She gave him a glare that said she wasn't interested in answering anything at all to him. "Why did you come back to Atlas?" She looked away, trying to hide her tells from him. Still, he nodded knowingly and continued, "Why did you have access to a military transport even before he came to you?" Her eyes opened in a bit of surprise that he knew that, but she quickly covered it up again. "Finally, did you know that your family home has been left in your name?" She turned to him with a confused brow, to which he nodded and pushed the second shot towards her. Connie looked at it with suspicion but downed it all the same, the booze dulling the pain that was just now hitting her. He stood up, taking the bottle and the glasses with him. "You are to be kept on house arrest on the Greenwich Mansion grounds until further notice. The guards will come and escort you shortly. My condolences." He left the room, the cold clack of the bar sealing the door behind him sounded heavier than before. She was glad for the booze warmth to be hitting her just about the same time as the cold emotional weight he had dropped on her. Again she was left alone with her thoughts.

* * *

The guard shouted, "She isn't taking visitors right now!"

Connie growled, "Can I see her for just a second?"

Wynne spoke with full force, bellowing as he stepped toward the gate to meet with her, "No, you can't just speak to her for a second." Connie sized him up and he seemed to be far more irritated than any time she had seen him at social events. She tried to speak up, but he held up his hand in denial, "I have made up my mind. My daughter is in no condition for visitors, let alone a Huntress."

"I can't even see her? Say hi? Check on her? It has been 2 months. Her wounds should have healed by now."

Wynne glared at her, "If you met with her, all you would do is encourage her to return to being a huntress and all she would do is make her own life worse. For her own safety, she will be staying here."

She glared as she let out a primal growl, taking a step dangerously close to hitting this man, "I care as much as you do, buddy. But she deserves the right to make that choice. All you are doing is turning her home into a prison cell." She escalated to a shout, "You can't keep her locked in here forever!" She grumbled, "Not if I have anything to say about it."

He bellowed in return, "I am head of my own home! I don't answer to you!" After a moment of locked glares he spoke in a dignified but final manner, "My daughter needs her family, not some interloper who could never understand. As far as you are concerned, Amaranthine Salvia died at beacon with the rest of them. Let her escape this life before it takes whatever she has left." With that, he motioned the guards to close the gate walked further into the compound.

Connie sighed began walking back to her transport she had landed in the woods. As she got to it, she heard a older woman ask her, "So what is an Atlas Military transport doing out here?" When Connie sized up the pink haired warrior, Rosa the Butcher smiled at her confidently, "If you have something to deliver to my granddaughter, I can see to that for you."

* * *

They took her in cuffs into the foyer of her childhood home, a place she knew rather well. They undid her cuffs, and left her new abode without another word. She looked around the room with mild disgust. How many hours had she spent here, dressed up like a doll, playing the part of the good little girl for people too old or too spoiled to appreciate her efforts beyond how she could help them. She walked the empty halls of the estate, realizing how small it all felt now.

She walked to her old room, unsurprised when opening it revealed a sewing room. Her mother had always wanted one and without Connie, she was sure her little sister insisted. She was almost thankful for the change as if this room had remained frozen in time, she would have simply shot herself. Still, out of curiosity, she went to check the paneling. She smiled when she found the same loose plank she had always used to hide her secrets from her father. She pulled it free to see if there was anything left in there. Sure enough, she found her old diary, but to her surprise, she found a stray folded paper with it. Opening it up to see what her past self had to say, her brow suddenly furrowed at the handwriting. It was her sister's.

Reading it through, it turned out that she had found the diary and, just like little sisters do, found a way to open it. She had read it and kept it hidden from mother. Apparently, after Connie left, they took their unwanted attentions for a 'proper' heiress and placed them upon her sister. At first she loved the attention and the praise, but it wasn't long before they were trying to marry her off to every boy that came from a halfway rich family. Anyone that could 'Raise the Greenwich name to new heights.' She protested of course, but this just caused them to turn up the pressure and grow more disgusted with her. She realized the noose Connie had walked away from and hiding this was her apology, hoping that Connie would find it one day.

When the bell at the door rang in the distance, Connie took the diary and note with her. She was gonna spend tonight drinking through dad's old booze collection and drowning in some memories. It took a hot minute to get to the door, but whoever it was hadn't rung the bell again. Connie opened the door with force only to see Winter standing there unaffected and far more distant than usual. "Lady Greenwich, I have come to make sure you are still on the premises and to check on how you are settling in."

Connie looked at Winter and, after shrugging, handed the note and Diary to her. "Found these while I was giving myself the tour. You can keep those. I'm sure there are plenty more buried in here. This place has loads of secrets. These ones are just..." Connie rubbed her neck, "Consider these an apology. You can spread whatever you find in there as far as you want. And," She sighed, "I'm sorry that I used the transport you lent me the way I did. I just, can relate to her. A noble hearted huntress being locked away and chained down by those that care more about decorum than the people in their lives. I saw a way to give her an out, a way to escape this life before it killed her with trustworthy friends at her side. Show her that she doesn't have to end up alone, like..." She coughed before she mumbled, "like me." She walked back into her home, grumpily stating, "Well, I'm gonna go drink the bastard's vintage booze. You are always welcome to visit, Win. No need to knock. Just try not to bring a kill squad with you and I'll be fine."

Winter looked at the broken lock on the diary before glancing at the letter. Skimming it for a time, her eyes seemed to become somewhat downcast before she tucked the note into the diary and walked away, leaving Connie to her moping and revelry.


	5. Of Burning Embers

Kaen sat in his team's room, thinking about it all, trying to put it all together. He looked to where his prosthetic should be and punched his bed full force, putting a hole through it. When he did, one of the guards shouted through the door, "Settle down or we will have to restrain you again."

He sighed, "Yeah, alright. Sorry." He walked over to Zoge's book shelf and skimmed through for something he could distract himself with. A book about chess, another about historical tactics deployed during the faunas war, yet another about the geopolitical situation in Atlas. Why didn't he just have any normal books. Kaen wondered how the rest of them were doing? Eventually he found a book sitting on the shelf that caught his eye. It was a book of myths and legends. Zoge was the most intelligent person Kaen knew that still believed in fairy tales. He claimed each was just people holding scraps of history together as best they could. He began to read, beginning as all stories like this had to. How the world began. A god of light and a god of darkness struggling over the heart of the world. Once he started, he couldn't help himself.

* * *

Kaen smiled ear to ear as Zoge held the metal in place as he reinforced the parts they had gotten for the prosthetic. "I know I shouldn't be, but I am surprised you knew enough about this kind of thing for us to do this."

Zoge nodded, watching each stroke with approval, "I built the Palette palm myself. I just had to do some brushing up on the nuances of this particular category. The real problem was heat tolerance and assembly. But with your skills at the forge and my steady hands, we should have this together in the next few hours."

Kaen took a few more blows to the metal before he lifted his hammer completely clear so that Zoge could quench it. He chuckled, "It won't be as pretty as it could be, but this will do just fine. We can paint it after the tournament." As Zoge put the plate side, he was oddly quiet, even for him, so Kaen asked, "What's eating you, Zoge?"

He closed his eyes and after a deep breath explained, "First round we are going against a very intelligent team leader, Olive's brother, and two complete unknowns. I tried to do some scouting on them, but aside from their basic fighting style, I can't pin them down. I'm just worried that we are jumping into the lion's pit."

Kaen patted him on the shoulder with his big stupidly confident smile, "Then we throw them just as many in return. If they think they can be less predictable than us, they clearly need a rude awakening."

The white haired youth cracked a smile and jokingly sneered, "Of course. How could they predict a group of loosely associated fighters that can hardly predict each other?" When he locked eyes with Kaen, it was clear this had helped ever so slightly, but he was clearly still concerned. Kaen's eyes became downcast as he tried to think of how he could make this better.

* * *

His concentration on the book was broken by Olive knocking lightly at his window. While he heard someone talking to the guards outside of the room, clearly trying to get in. He looked nervous but opened the window for her, "Look, Oli, I-" She put her hand over his mouth and motioned him to be quiet.

She whispered to him, "I know what happened and, I'm going to take care of it. But I need you to know, we don't believe you did it on purpose. Connie is trying to talk the guards into giving you a bit more breathing room. I have a lot I need to get done, but I wanted to let you know." Kaen gripped the collar of her suit before she could slip out and pulled her into a hug. While she squirmed in his grip, he smiled. Upon releasing her, he opened a drawer and pulled out the pile of envelopes, handing them to Olive. "I was going to give these to you guys after the tournament, but it looks like that isn't going to happen for awhile. Make sure everyone gets theirs." Olive looked at them, then at his sincere expression and snatched them with an annoyed sigh before nodding and going silently back out the window.

He sat back down on his bed, staring into the now doused fires of his forge, reflecting the current state of his soul.

* * *

Round 1: Team FEMM vs Team KOAL

Zoge called out, "Olive! Stay in formation!" He didn't have long to reel her back in as Emerald was on him before he knew it.

Kaen hoisted his blade onto his shoulder as he shouted, "I got it!" The silver haired fighter jumped in front of him as if to stop him. Seeing Kaen wasn't stopping, he aimed a kick at the boy's head only to be met with steel. "Outta my way, pretty boy!" He swung the massive door-like blade to knock the boy aside, the sheer weight and heft propelling him out of the way, much to his surprise. The boy seemed to backflip and land some distance away and charged again, only for Kaen to flip over his heavy blade and block it again. Leaving it impaled on the ground, Kaen drew his twin short swords and attached them at the pommel, throwing the combined weapon like a glaive at Peri. The caped fighter jumped clear of the blades as Olive closed the distance and landed a powerful elbow strike into his gut, launching him from the ring. Kaen smiled at her success just to see the silver haired boy spin around the handle of his sword and kick her hard out of the ring right afterwards.

The boy chuckled, "Sorry, kitty cat, but you were stealing my thunder." He bowed a little, "Name's Mercury, and you have been ignoring me."

Kaen sighed, pulling the massive blade from the ground behind him, "Sorry about that. Promise it won't happen again." He moved the blade to his side, and stabbed it into the ground again. "Looks like I will need something a bit lighter to put you down." He drew his only remaining longsword and took a stance that Mercury didn't seem to recognize it, but rose a leg in response.

"Got a bit of fire to you, Sparky. That is just perfect." The two charged at each other, Kaen trying to stay light on his feet as he intercepted the incoming attacks. Mercury taunted, "Come on! Show me that fire!"

Kaen was surprised at that comment, but blocked it out as he went on the attack, kicking one of Mercury's legs out with his and taking a step in to lunge. With a smirk, Mercury let himself fall out of range of the attack, putting out his arms out to catch himself and spin like a top, striking at Kaen a few times before landing on his feet, managing to knock the blade free from Kaen's grip. He closed the distance, thinking he had this under control but paused when he felt his feet contact metal yet again. Kaen punched Mercury as hard as he could with his right arm heat coming off from the sheer force of it, Mercury barely fast enough to block it as his aura took a massive hit on the display.

Kaen went to pick up his blade and sheathed it as he got into a boxing stance, "Boy-o, you want to make this a game of who has more grit and you picked the wrong opponent." Mercury glared at him as if this was an insult to his pride as Kaen began to bob from foot to foot, his eyes starting to gain a slight shine. Mercury unleashed a flurry of attacks from his legs, peppering Kaen with attacks. He weathered them as he charged in, blocking them with his arms in front of his face. Braving the storm of them, his body began to let off a glow as he landed as hard a blow he could on Mercury. When he did, he swore he saw a look of satisfaction. To Kaen's satisfaction, the punch sent Mercury into the wall outside the ring. Turning his semblance back down so he could catch his breath, he turned to see Amy had been eliminated and that Zoge had been fighting the remaining foes himself. Kaen looked at the scoreboard and saw there were still two other fighters. It looked like Zoge was swinging his blade more than he needed to in his defense against Cinder. Kaen assumed this was probably the work of the missing fighter. Still, Zoge had been pacing himself. Watching for their patterns.

Kaen looked around the arena, spotting the green haired girl laughing from behind the terrain. He smirked, pulling his heavy blade free from the ground as he went to close the distance. She seemed to spot him with a panic. Swearing under her breath, she moved to break Kaen's eyeline. Zoge smirked as he began to slowly approach Cinder, blocking her attacks as she began to realize what was going on. She narrowed her eyes in annoyance as his smirk grew. Kaen just refocused on his opponent, his eyes shimmering before he cleaved through all the trees with his massive blade, Emerald cried out, "Holy Shit!" as she ducked behind one of the stumps. He let his semblance die down again after he felt his muscles and bone mend after a swing that powerful. He let the blade fly free as he jumped over her stump and dropped a powerful knee onto Emerald. Rolling through the attack, he turned around just to see her try and come at him. As she charged, he caught her and kicked him over him as he rolled backwards, sending her out of the ring. Upon seeing this, he swore he saw a brief smirk on Cinder's face before Zoge landed a strike on her that put a glyph on her. Dropping his thumb to his hand, the symbol shone and unleashed a burst of wind that sent Cinder flying out of the ring.

"The victors are Team KOAL!"

Zoge panted from the exertion, of the match but turned to Kaen and sighed with relief, "I feel like we just fought fate and won." Zoge's knees almost gave out, but Kaen caught him. The rest of each team came to the center of the ring and shook hands with each other. Cinder's team was smiling ear to ear, but it felt off. Still, the match was won. It was something.

* * *

Kaen turned in surprise at a large figure tumbling into the room, upon seeing it was Amy he suddenly froze. She shouldn't be here. He didn't want her here. What happened was already bad enough, but now she was going to ruin her career. He walked over and knelt down to help her up, saying, "Amy, you shouldn't be here." She had her whole life ahead of her. Last thing she deserved was a fool like him dragging her down.

While he was thinking about this, she suddenly jumped onto him, hugging him tight around the shoulders. "Don't say anything. I don't want to hear it." He could feel her sobbing as she hugged him as tight as she could.

He held her close with his own arm, locking her into place as he tried to hide his shame, "I'm sorry, Am. You deserve better than a fraud like me." He could hardly keep himself from crying himself. He had caused them all so much pain. He admitted to himself out loud, "I'm no huntsman, and I'm no hero. Just some kid who got in over his head." Saying it caused his heart to sink into his gut.

He felt her begin to hug so tight it was actually getting hard to breathe. "Kaen, you are so much more than that. You," He could feel her lose control of herself as her tone faltered, "You are our leader! You make us smile when it is hard. When we are in doubt, you make us believe its possible for things to change." She started choking up, clearly fighting past her tears. "You may not be a hero to you, but you are one to me." He paused for a moment, letting that sink in. She released the hug and moved towards the window, refusing to let him see her face. She put on her best brave voice and stated, "When everything is over, I know Connie can help us sort this out. Until then, we will keep going so Team KOAL is ready when their leader gets back." She seemed to give an affirmation nod to herself before jolting at the sound of the guards and bolting out the window. The shutters slammed hard behind her.

The guards threw open the door only to see Kaen standing alone in the room. He laughed awkwardly, "Sorry. I needed some air and the wind slammed the window shut." The looked around, not seeing anything else off and shrugged.

One of the guards, seemed to suddenly remember something and motioned the second to stay and keep an eye on Kaen. He came back with a case and put it on Zoge's bed. "Alright, so, we took the dust cartridges, but we received orders that you are allowed to have this back, but if you try to make a break for it, we will take it away again and cuff you to the wall. Are we clear?" Kaen looked at it gratefully and nodded, allowing the guards to leave the room before he put the prosthetic back on. He gave it a few test swings. It hadn't taken too well to the abuse from the tournament, but it did make all the difference in the world to have.

* * *

Round 2: Team KOAL vs Team CFVY

Coco laughed a little as she saw Kaen and Olive in the ring. "So, the two rookies cleared round one and now think they have what it takes to go toe to toe with us?" She lowered her shades a little to smirk at them, "Gotta admire their guts."

Yatsuhashi looked at the sizable blade on Kaen's back and nodded, "I can't promise that won't get them hurt."

She adjusted her shades, "If you can keep the big one away from me, I can take her." He nodded and adjusted his blade in his hand.

Kaen chuckled, "Well, I have picked my dance partner. You got this one?" When the green haired faunas smirked big and pushed her shades back, he laughed. This was going to be a good one. When the environments rolled around they rolled a grassland and a desert, the arena shifting to accommodate. Kaen sighed, "Well, no where to hide."

Olive's tail twitched with glee as she chuckled, "Yep… no where to run. Just how I like it." When the buzzer went off, Kaen swore he heard a hard rock progression as he started in on the big one. As he did, he heard a clicking sound that sped up suddenly as a flurry of bullets came his way. He drew his longsword, twirling it to block the incoming barrage. As he looked to look at the source, he was surprised the swordsman and jumped over the stream of bullets and had blocked Olive's wires with his blade, pulling her in close and trying to punch her out of the air. Her agility allowed her to twist out of the way and deliver a kick that hit his armored shoulder. She activated a dust cartridge in her gloves, sending a current through the blade. Kaen turned so his massive blade blocked her incoming fire. They had changed dance partners on him. But this just made Kaen smirk. Zoge had been right. Send the mountain to fight Olive and wear Kaen down at a range he couldn't fight back at.

Kaen pulled the blade up at an angle that protected as much of him as he could as he began to charge her and the minigun. Olive danced around the swordsman, trying to pepper Coco with her dust gun while she allowed him to try and use her as a flail. He had seemingly insulated his blade but that didn't change the plan. Olive would play the angry yo-yo and Kaen would bring the mountain to her doorstep. She tried to concentrate her fire on one point of his sword and was leaving a sizable dent, but seemed impressed at how thick the blade was. When he finally got close to her, she changed her gun back to a bag, seeming to get ready for a good fight. As he began to swing, he smirked, seeing now what she had done. She had super heated the center of his blade with her bullets. She struck his blade with her bag and snapped it in two, getting shoulder checked for her trouble. It seems he knew she would do this and tried to swing Olive into Kaen. Instead of ducking or getting hit, he grabbed her leg as Olive pulled on the wire, swinging her legs forward, sending Kaen flying towards him. Kaen tried to hit him with a dropkick only to meet with the armored shoulder pad, knocking it clear off of him.

Kaen chuckled as he wielded the half melted blade, "We finally have our proper dance partners." Yatsuhashi looked in surprise when he realized Olive had broken her cords free from his blade and was clearing the space between her and Coco.

He laughed a little, "You guys planned for this?"

Kaen looked surprised and laughed himself, "Uh, not exactly. Took the advice of a friend of mine. See, Olive and I, we prefer to play fast and loose. So, you had better be ready for things to keep getting crazier." He got into his stance as Yatsuhashi did as well, a small smile crossing his face. It was only now that Kaen saw the problem. His blade had been halved and now he had to overcome a swordsman just as strong as him. The two proceeded to exchange blows with their large heavy blades. When the hook was used to try and pull the blade from Kaen's hand, Kaen smiled, leaning back against the pull and aiming his left arm at the opposition. With a gesture of his hand, he sent a series of shots from the wrist of his prosthetic, throwing the other swordsman off his game. Feeling slack in the grip, his eyes began to shine, pulling as hard as his muscles would allow him, tearing a few of them in the process. He got the blade free from the grip of his opponent. When he tried to grip it, he felt some bullets knock it free from his grasp before one of Olive's wires pulled Coco's foot through the loose sand.

Looking away was a mistake, Kaen getting a strong strike to the back of his head, sending him flying some distance away. Upon hitting the ground, he saw his dance partner grab the blade from the ground and try to run to the aid of his teammate. Kaen smirked to see what was happening. Olive had managed to encircle Coco and was now using lightning dust to shock the crap out of Coco. When Yatsuhashi got there, Olive attempted to jump away and play keep away only to get a heavy bag to the back of her head. Kaen got up and tackled Yatsuhashi just as he was about to grab Olive. Coco detangled herself and changed her weapon again, unleashing a volley of basic bullets at Olive, sending her out of the ring and wearing her aura down. The two bulky warriors were exchanging blows until Kaen heard the gun barrel turning behind him. His eyes lit up and his aura began to flow out of his back a little as he pulled with all his might, lifting Yatsuhashi over his head and into the way of her incoming shots. As she took a moment to stop her fire, Kaen tossed him out of the ring and drew his blade, striking her hard enough with his blade to send her flying twenty feet, her aura having been worn down enough from Olive's shenanigans for this to get her below the threshold. When she was done, he walked over to her and offered a hand.

Coco laughed a little at it, taking his hand and getting up. "I have to admit, I wasn't expecting you two to fight with so much... energy. It is really nice to see someone with fire out here."

He chuckled, "Well, I have to admit, we were mostly just making it up as we went along." She patted him on the shoulder with approval and went over to her teammate, helping him up. He tried to apologize but she just reassured him with a pat on the chest and a nod. Kaen went over to check on Olive just to see her already dusting herself off. "So, how was it being a human yo-yo?"

She glared at him from behind her shades, "Faunas yo-yo, and it was actually way more fun than I thought it would be."

* * *

As he sat in his room, he heard someone talking over the intercom from the stadium but at this distance it was impossible to tell what was going on. He looked out his window to see a series of odd transports on the horizon. His gut told him that something was going down. But they had his swords. As he heard the guards run down the hallway, he couldn't help but feel himself tense up. It was here that he remembered they hadn't taken ALL his weapons. He hated to do this, but with things like this, there was no other choice. He reached to the space behind the furnace that vented the smoke out of the room. There he found and pulled free the blade of his mentor. A bronze colored longsword with a gun built in. Nirvana. He threw himself out window, shards of glass following him. He rolled from the roof and landed in the courtyard. As he did, he looked up to see Grimm marching into the campus. Swallowing hard, he charged into the fray, trying to put his concerns aside for now. He didn't know how they got here, but he knew that someone needed to do something.

He had to do this. He had to make it right. He couldn't fix what he had done, but this... this was something he could do. So what if he couldn't win. He had to try. As he charged in, he saw one of Atlas' Knight units. At least he would have support against the Grimm, or so he thought. Before he had reached it, an arrow shaped energy shot pierced the machine. He looked up to where the shot came from and saw a very grumpy Connie. She dropped to the courtyard and growled, "I warned him! I knew this could happen!" She saw Kaen and the blade he carried and spoke like a military commander, "Phoenix! I don't know where you got that blade from, but if it is still sharp then you and I are going to take care of this." He nodded, glad to have someone at his back, even if he didn't deserve it. So, the Knights AND the Grimm were their enemies. That made things simple enough.

* * *

Round 3: Team KOAL vs Team RWBY

Kaen stood across from Yang, laughing to himself as he patted his twin long swords now that Zoge had returned it. He teased, "Really? Of all their options, they send you?"

Yang growled, "And what do you mean by that?" She cracked her knuckles as her lilac eyes turned red.

He waved a bit dismissively, "Nothing. Just that they sent a berserker to fight a swordsman. You are strong, but I'm the only one who knows how to fight here." He drew his long swords and teased, "Remember, I won't be going easy on you, so do your best."

Yang glared with such force that Kaen realized in his playful trash talk he had hit an actual nerve. Still, he had always wanted to fight Yang at full force and since this was the final round, Zoge couldn't get on his case for doing the same. It appeared he was about to get everything he wanted. A good fight and a good show for the audience. Still, best to hold off until she was ready to unleash her full force. When the bell went off, she motioned him to come at her. He smirked as he did just that, coming at her with his longswords in hand. She dodged and weaved around his swings, trying to deliver a powerful punch to his gut when she had her chance. He turned to avoid it, trying to deliver a back spin kick to her in response that she blocked easily with a kick of her own. The two took a step back and re-engaged, exchanging blows and deflections in quick succession. She took a leap back, using a few shots from her Ember Celica to knock his long swords away from his hands, smirking like she had won only to get annoyed when he pulled his short swords free from his belt.

"Oh, Not gonna be that easy, Goldilocks." Her eyes shone crimson red as she yelled a primal yell and closed the distance again, unleashing a flurry of blows at him. He could feel each and every impact as she clearly wasn't holding back anymore. Good. He took advantage of her close distance to entrap her arm and unleash a flurry of blows with his blade before kicking her away from his grip. When she stood back up, she punched her fists together and her hair began to shine brightly. He smirked big but didn't realize what he was about to unleash.

When she got close again, he tried to block her attacks just to watch his swords shatter under her assault. Just as she thought she was going to land a lariat on him, he lifted his arms, two blade-like shields unfolding from his sleeves in her way. These shields held up for the first attack as he drew his repaired heavy blade, stabbing it into the ground and flipping behind it just as she launched a flying kick at him. He quickly grabbed his fallen long swords, connecting them and throwing the glaive at her while she was still in mid-air. She shot it aside, using more shots to change her angle of approach, striking him hard and fast with a combo he wasn't ready for. Her kicks and punches landed home. She uppercutted him, leaping into the air to launch him into the center of the ring hard enough to crack the stone. She let out a breath and flipped her hair as she glanced at the aura meter and started to walk away, "Goldilocks that." She stopped and turned in surprise when she felt a sudden rush of heat in the ring.

"My turn." Where he had fallen, his aura filled the air. He stood up, the jets of energy spreading like wings of flame. His eyes shone with a brilliant orange light. It was his turn to catch her unawares. He charged her faster than she thought possible, pulling his heavy blade free from the ground with ease and striking her with it as if it weighed nothing at all, knocking her into the air and leaping up to deliver a series of blows himself. While he did send her to the ground with force, but she recovered far more gracefully than him, her hair shining brighter than ever. As he came down with his blade in hand, she unleashed a series of shots to slow him down. As he landed, he could feel the strain of his semblance getting the better of him. He took one last swing, but despite himself, he had to deactivate his semblance mid swing. The alarm sounded.

The announcer declared, "Due to aura depletion, Team RWBY wins the semi-finals!"

Kaen could barely keep his head upright. He was struggling to keep himself awake, let alone standing up. His semblance overclocked what aura he had, but it didn't actually increase the level of his aura. He tried to stand but was struggling. That was when he saw the shadow over him. He don't know why. He doesn't know how it looked this way, but as he looked up at Yang, all he could see was her winding up a punch, aiming to intercept the gauntlet before she could strike. Something told him that she was about to attack him. Something told him that this was his only option. It wasn't until he had gone too far that he saw it for what it was. She had been offering her hand to him, and now that hand was sailing across the arena. He stared in shock and horror. He froze up as she fell backwards holding where her arm once was. He just knelt there, confused and horrified. Guards came in, cuffing him up, dragging him away, taking away his weapons and removing his prosthetic arm, emptying it of all the dust he had stored in it.

* * *

Kaen shouted, "You got any dust casings, Connie?"

She growled, "Ran out just a second ago, Phoenix. Looks like that arm isn't much more than a spare hand at this point." He nodded as he sliced through a Beowulf before pulling the handle down and pulling the trigger, causing the blade to rotate and opened, running in a current between the prongs and shooting an electrical bolt out from between them and into a Knight unit about to strike a civilian who ran from Kaen like he was a monster. While Kaen tried not to let that bother him, Connie whistled, "I don't know who gave that to you, but that is one impressive sword you have there."

He nodded, "It used to be my mentor's blade, but I took it with me after..." He dropped silent for a moment only speaking up when he saw an Ursa. He hesitated only a moment before pulling another shot off at it with the blade and shouting, "We got a big one!"

Connie scoffed, doing a back flip, taking her bow apart into twin blades and digging them deep into the head of the beast, "There, you go, kid! Need any other babysitters?" He was embarrassed by how easy she took it out so easily, but didn't have a lot of time to worry about it. He just needed to focus on getting everyone out of here. It was here that the final hour came.

He turned a corner and saw a red haired faunas closing in on Amy who looked like a terrified child being hunted by the boogeyman. He didn't have time to think. He didn't need to. As he, ran up the rubble, he shouted, "Ams, Get down!"

The red haired faunas laughed at him, staring right at Kaen as he closed the distance, "How cute. Still trying to be the hero. You can die together." A moment later, all he could see was red. A moment after that, he couldn't feel his sword in his hand or his legs below him. The next moment, all he could see was Connie desperately trying to escape with Amy. That moment was the last straw. He couldn't just lay here and watch as this guy killed them. Killed Amy. No...

He could feel himself standing though he didn't know how. He didn't care. He felt a fire burning deep inside him but he didn't care. The pain faded, his reason faded. All that remained was them, him, and the swordsman. He threw a bit of rubble at the swordsman, the stone just barely missing his opponent.

Adam turned and stared in disbelief as he watched his opponent who now seemed to be physically engulfed in flames, his skin blackening and falling to the ground as ash. Still, he approached with eyes filled with a cold fury. He kept his blade ready, laughing to himself as he watched the metal arm begin to melt from the flames. "You can't fight me with that arm anymore, not that it did you any good. That means this is as good as mine." Adam motioned to a nearby Paladin unit to finish this fool for him and turned to walk away. It didn't last long as he felt himself get hit by a heavy pole. Rolling to recover he saw the figure carrying a lamp post which it then impaled through the Paladin unit like a hot knife through butter. It was also in this moment Adam realized his mask had been knocked off. Looking around he saw that it was just the two of them right now. "You are just like the rest of them! You think you can just walk all over us! Like you are above us! You never had to suffer or struggle! Not until now."

The figure stood unamused before ripping the arm off the fallen Paladin unit and ran at Adam with it who tried to jump away only to be launched high into the air as Kaen suddenly switched direction, the melting metal landing on his seared and cracking skin as more bits fell off. When Adam landed, Kaen wasted no time closing the distance and starting to bludgeon him with his massive makeshift cudgel. As he thought about the rest being in danger this was all he could do. All he had left. This was how it ends. His voice came out like the sound of crackling flames, "THEN SO BE IT!" He could tell he had nearly depleted Adam's aura when his prosthetic finished melting away, sending his weapon flying. Adam began to laugh, thinking this was over, only to have Kaen mount him and start headbutting him over and over and over again. He wasn't going to let himself be beaten. Not when it was this important. He wasn't done! Despite being able to move the flaming limbs, he couldn't feel them. They didn't matter. Not right now! He needed to feel the bones break. He hadn't even noticed or cared about the brand on Adam's face. If he had his way, he would do worse. During this barrage, he felt himself hit and sent flying by a sudden impact. Taken off guard, he managed to turn his head to see a transport and flown into him and had landed near Adam to get him out of there. As Kaen went to pick himself up, Adam had already gotten in and stumbled over to the controls, using them himself to escape as quickly as possible.

Kaen shouted with his non-existent voice at the escaping craft, feeling just now how much his body had taken damage. As the target of his ire escaped, the adrenaline wore off and he could feel the strain finally getting him. He fell among the rubble of Beacon, staring into the sky as the flames burned around him. This was how he went out, huh? Used as a pawn to end the school and even let the bad guy get away. But maybe this is what he deserved. He had saved a lot of people today. Looking at his charred and blackened skin still seeming to burn, he assumed it was unavoidable. But even now, some part of him wasn't going to accept this. Before the blackness consumed him he made a call to anyone that would hear him. Asking for some way to keep going. Eventually the weight was too much and the darkness claimed his mind there in the rubble of Beacon. In the midst of the darkness he heard a voice say, "Way to hero, Kid. You feel free to rest. You've earned it."


End file.
